nonstop since. Wednesday teams began returning again and we are currently
living in a hotel in Atlanta. Our schedule will be as such-receive teams at
airport, take shuttle to hotel, eat together, debrief the teams’ time on the
field, go to bed, wake up early, take students to the airport, make sure they
get on the planes. Cry. Then debrief leaders the remainder of the day. Send
leaders to airport. Say a pray of thanks. Rinse and repeat. Again and again and
again until all 16 teams and leaders are safely home. The final team returns
home August 6th, so we have several more debriefs ahead of us…the last will
take place in Mexico.
with the last team to Haiti, pulling out at 2:30am. Upon arrival, layers of
clothes began coming off as we adjusted to the heat and humidity. Just like
every country it has its own sights, sounds, and smells. But there is something
else – in some it was hope, others despair. In some the Holy Spirit at work and
others, hollow eyes.
location of ministry. Two nights sleeping on the roofs in tents during down
pours, thunder and lightning was more than enough to confirm it was time to
relocate.
home of a local pastor. There were several large indoor rooms in which we could
throw down our air mats and sleeping bags.
Voices and music began at 9pm and went through the night.
Not only did they have times of planned worship services directly below us, but
also spontaneous. The second night a guest came to the pastor and within half
an hour, a demon was cast out. A battle of great spiritual proportions is being
fought in Haiti…and we are winning!
and praying for them. Both the Hai tians and our team embraced this-a ministry to
both groups. We have too many stories to share them in a single blog.
Port-au-Prince to the University of Miami hospital. The time waiting was used
wisely. We prayed over person after person and in some, saw amazing healing
take place.
She saw us praying and asked for prayer. “No problem.
Anything specific?” I asked.
“Heart pains,” explained the translator.
“May I touch you?”
She nodded.
I placed my hand on her heart, asked God to heal her
physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually in the name of Jesus, the
Stronger Man who lives within us.
felt, translator repeated after her, “She feels fine!”
Woman #2 |
She pointed at the translator and said, “I want them to pray
for me.”
I called the team over and repeated the previous prayer.
Once again I asked, “How do you feel?”
She nodded and smiled, “Good!”
During this, other students who were praying and observing
from where they sat saw that the “American Doctors” often walked by and shook
their heads, not believing if healing could happen. I couldn’t help but think
of their amazement when the women told them their chest pains were gone!
Another woman suffered from Elephantitis-swelling of the
ankle and leg. As we prayed for her, she pulled up her skirt, placing our hands
on her leg. Faith! She believed God could and would heal. This same woman
struggled with bad pain as a result of injury from the earthquake and pain in
her side. I prayed… cried… prayed more. Physical healing did not appear to
happen, but something much greater did. She received love and peace.
Woman #4 |
From the back doctors’ table outside, I could see a woman in
a green dress being draped over the arms of two others. She dragged her feet as
if she were carrying the weight of the world. There were moans and groans of
pain. I began to pray, later finding out others on the team saw her as well and
began praying.
The thirty second walk to the building must have taken her
fifteen minutes. By the time she arrived, we were eagerly awaiting her arrival.
It was time to pray. God has a plan… and this was not it. We asked, “Can we
pray for you?”
“Yes, but first let me put my name on the list to be seen,”
the woman replied.
“Of course,” I responded. “We will wait!”
While waiting, we continued praying with others. Soon she
returned. We prayed and a doctor stopped nearby. “Is she okay?” the doctor
asked.
“No. Can you see her soon?” we asked.
They whisked her away before we could blink.
Fifteen minutes later, she came slowly back with only one
friend by her side. Improvement already! More prayer, more prayer… the blind to
see, the lame to walk! We believed God had the power to do all of this and more.
God.
Sadly, we said our goodbyes and flew back the next day. Once
we landed, phone calls, text messages, and emails inundated us. Our teams are
doing great. God is at work in the nations and it’s an honor to be a part of it
in a small way. We look forward to sharing many, many more stories and
pictures.
Thanks for the prayers-
Us, the Rocks.
Awesome!!
I laughed, I cried, I started packing, I found my passport, I prayed, I unpacked… then I praised God for people like you.
Don&Connie,
Great post. It sounds like when you moved you went to stay at Pastor David Doussard’s. If so you moved in with him right after my team moved out. We were told of a group that had their stuff blown off the roof the night before in that huge storm. We were at an outdoor revival that night and when the storm came up everything they had set up was blown down and we sought refuge in the church building. Walking home that night was like wading through a river.
Awesome pictures and stories! Thank you for reminding me to pray for Haiti. Since it is not shown in the news much anymore, it is easy for us here to forget. God bless you Connie, Don and the rest of your team!
you guys. you are awesome. I could picture myself there with you, praying with people and seeing God do his thang. Oh, how I’ve missed the summer mission season 🙂
miss you too, Crock. we need that catch up phone call…
love the stories and pics! i can’t wait to get to Haiti. Miss you both sooo much!!! Crock – i have been praying about leading out a team next year. we’ll talk soon bout it.
love you – kim